We can take the formulation one step further and simplify things. Some of the IP ranges are contiguous. These contiguously-addressed subnets are one after the other, in order, making it easy to combine them. The final result would look like this:

●15.0.1.1-15.0.5.254

●15.0.30.1-15.0.39.254

●15.0.55.1-15.0.55.254

●15.0.64.1-15.0.74.254

This has reduced the number of IP ranges from 27 to 4. We can build this into a form that is easily imported into HP Web Jetadmin and also reflects descriptions. Here is an example of data that can be imported via a text file:

●15.0.1.1-15.0.5.254 = subnet range for western area

●15.0.30.1-15.0.39.254 = subnet range for central area

●15.0.55.1-15.0.55.254 = subnet range for branch office

●15.0.64.1-15.0.74.254 = subnet range for eastern area

Consolidating ranges makes dealing with large quantities of data simpler but may not help when descriptions are needed for the purpose of cataloging ranges.

Import and Export Features of IP Range Files

IP range data can be developed in other tools and imported through text files. In fact, HP Web Jetadmin can export IP range data to text files. This makes it easier to deal with large numbers of IP ranges, manipulate complex data and archive data for use in multiple instances. Tile format for IP Range import and export file format can be broken down as follows:

●1 range per line

●Each IP address is separated by a hyphen character (-)

●Comment or description strings can be appended to the IP range by using an equal character (=)

Here is an example of 1 IP range with a comment: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx-xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx=descriptive text string (where xxx represents an octet in the IP address).

There is no known limit to the number of IP ranges manageable within HP Web Jetadmin software. IP ranges are also used by other features like PC-Connected printer discovery and HP Web Jetadmin Installations discovery. All IP ranges entered into HP Web Jetadmin can also be managed globally from within Tools > Options > Shared > Discovery > Methods > IP Range > IP Ranges.

IP Range Discoveries for Network Devices

IP Range discoveries for network devices or HP Web Jetadmin installations first send an SNMP query to all addresses within the range. When nodes are discovered, HP Web Jetadmin performs queries to determine qualified devices. These qualified devices, when found, are added to the device lists.

Characteristics of IP range discoveries for network devices or HP Web Jetadmin installations include:

●IP ranges are simply two addresses that represent range begin and end points.

●Multiple ranges can be specified in an IP Range discovery.

●IP range data can be manually added through the user interface.

●IP ranges can be imported to HP Web Jetadmin from text files.

134 Chapter 3 Device Management

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